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Greetings to the Young Communist League of
Canada on their National Convention from
Canadians for Peace & Socialism
September 24th to 26th, Toronto ON
By: Don Currie
Chair Canadians for Peace and Socialism
Editor Focus on Socialism
September 215, 2010
www.FocusOnSocialism.ca
Dear Comrades and friends
On September 24th to 26th the YCL of Canada will hold its convention in Toronto Ontario.
Canadians for peace and socialism extend our greetings and solidarity to the delegates.
The Canadian YCL convention follows a recently concluded USA YCL conference. (See
below).
Permit me, as chair of CPS, to applaud both the US and Canadian YCL members on their
superb achievement in convening such important meetings.
With the Canadian YCL convention in mind, some observations on the achievement of the
CPUSA and the US YCL in convening a youth conference of its members on the matter of the
demand for full employment may be useful.
The CPUSA is setting an example of how to assist the US YCL to organize serious discussions
and participate more actively in organizing the youth of their country to simultaneously
defeat the extreme right and strengthen demands on the Obama administration for the
enactment of a program of full employment and youth rights and to defeat racism.
Similar opportunities prevail in Canada to confront and defeat the minority extreme right‐
wing conservative Harper administration and confront whatever government emerges from
the next federal election with demands for a Canadian youth bill of rights with peace and full
employment as its central demand. The YCL is well placed to mount such a campaign now.
We are confident that in spite of all other peripheral issues however important they may
seem to be at the moment, that the delegates at the Canadian YCL convention, with the
assistance of the leaders of the CPC, will likewise focus their deliberations and discussion on
how to organize the struggle for full employment and peace in our time in our country.
There is no one else to do it!
Comrade Jarvis Tyner in his brief keynote to the US YCL conference noted the rise of popular
support in the USA for socialism as a real alternative to us capitalism. We in CPS believe a
similar instinct for socialism exists in Canada, particularly among the youth hardest hit by the
global crisis of capitalism.
The YCL convention in Canada, will, we are confident, base it’s discussions in the reality of an
expanding global and destabilizing economic and political crisis of the capitalist system.
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The crisis arises out of irresolvable inherent contradictions of the capitalist system
compounded by the lust for empire of the finance capitalist elites of Canada and the USA.
We are also confident that the YCL will reject all the claims of finance minister Jim Flaherty
that Canada has escaped the global crisis of capitalism. We have not. It will worsen with
serious consequences for the youth of Canada. Canada is tightly integrated into the global
system of capitalism and has not and cannot escape the effects of the current crisis.
The Canadian situation is made worse by the policy of both parties of the profit system, the
liberals and conservatives, to support, collaborate and compete with us imperialism via war
and militarization of our economies in the global pursuit of maximum profit.
Canadian finance capitalism is complicit in promoting US‐NATO organized imperialist military
aggression, launched from 750 us military bases around the world, against other nations and
people’s.
US‐Canadian finance capital jointly and recklessly exploits and exports Canadian energy to
satisfy the demand of the US military and us markets for cheap Canadian energy without
regard for future Canadian energy needs.
Canadian and us finance capital is exported to exploit global markets for the exclusive
benefit of Canadian and us finance capitalist banking and investor interests. All of this is
done without the approval of the Canadian people and at the expense of the future of the
youth.
If this reality is the starting point of your deliberations, you will emerge stronger and more
united, since it is the only firm basis upon which a militant appeal to the youth of Canada, in
solidarity with the youth of North America and the whole world for action to win a life with a
purpose will be realized.
Youth have a right to full and creative employment, a world without war, and full
sovereignty of their peoples over the wealth and resources of their own country.
Youth have the right and urgent necessity to demand an end to the anarchic tyranny of
finance capital over economic development.
Youth instinctively embrace what is new, and that is why they are attracted to socialism
since it is the urgent and practical and modern answer to the deepening crisis of capitalism.
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The Young Communist League is the future. It will win if it is aware and confident in the need
to study and apply the science of Marxism‐Leninism and uphold the achievements of
socialism both past and present.
Reading comrade Tyner’s remarks in 2010 takes me back to the Canadian YCL convention in
1970 in Toronto Ontario that coincided with the Lenin centenary, where Jarvis and Tim Buck,
CPC chair, to spirited applause, addressed the large convention.
Tim buck concluded his remarks to the young delegates in 1970 by stating, “let no one or
anything undo what you have done here today!’
With regret, I am compelled to observe in 2010, that we Canadian communists did not listen
carefully to what Tim Buck was actually saying, that there were powerful forces in our
country that feared the rise of a militant, Leninist, Young Communist League, rooted firmly
in the working class struggles of our country and drawing its inspiration from real socialism
of the past and linking it proudly to the present and the future.
The historical record shows that since 1970 our work to organize the YCL was undone more
than once. That must not be allowed to happen again!
A Young Communist League, confident in the empowering science of Marxism‐Leninism,
with a growing engagement with the expectations and the real struggles of the youth of
Canada, will have what it takes to stay the course and grow in numbers and political
influence among the youth.
Much is being said on the internet and is reflected in the pre‐convention discussion of the
Canadian YCL convention of ideological and theoretical problems that are present in our
movement both in Canada and the USA. Such problems are not to be feared. They are the
inevitable reflection in our movement of a profound crisis of the capitalist system. These
problems are resolvable but only if they are recognized as being problems and if the forums
are created for their organized discussion and resolution.
That is the challenge and responsibility confronting the leaderships of the CPC and the
CPUSA. They must cast aside all notions of leadership infallibility and self‐critically address
that task and do so urgently.
The questions being discussed are profoundly important, even when they seem on the
surface to deal with trivial questions.
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It is our view in CPS, that these discussion, even when they are expressed sharply and
imperfectly, must not be allowed to be suppressed or glossed over, since they all relate in
one way or another to what constitutes an objectively true and verifiable communist
analysis of the deepening crisis of capitalism in our countries in the imperialist stage of their
development.
Events are moving swiftly and our theory and ideology must not only keep pace but do what
no other theory can do, predict and anticipate events.
There is much to be done. There is much to be won. As the CPC has said so many times in the
past, “it takes a struggle to win.” the YCL has an important role to play.
Left Turn Canada!
Long live the YCL!
Don Currie, Chair Canadians for Peace and Socialism
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Convention 2010, CPUSA Youth Conference: Why we are here
Jarvis Tyner
Welcome Address to the Communist Party USA Youth Conference
Chicago, IL
July 17‐18, 2010
Good Morning comrades,
On behalf of the national broad of the Party, the Coordinating Committee of the Young
Communist League (YCL) and the interim Party/YCL committee I want to welcome to this
conference on the Youth Generation.
First I want to thank the Illinois district of the party for hosting this event. With out the
efforts of John Bachtell the district chair this conference would not have been possible.
I especially want to thank all of you who have traveled long distances to be here in at the
beautiful Unity Center. It is so good to see you. And to those who have joined us on the
telephone I say thank you for taking the time and effort to be with us this weekend. It is so
good to have you with us.
We are here this weekend to better meet the urgent challenges of the fight for jobs and
the building of our Party and League.
The crisis of youth unemployment is doing great damage to working families and
communities especially communities of color. Those within the sound of my voice who
have experienced the great hardships of joblessness know what I'm talking about. For
black and brown youth the problem is catastrophic in some communities the rate has been
over 50% for youth for decades. That has consequences, big consequences.
Frankly the rise in violence and murders taking place in black and brown communities
across this country has a lot to do with long term, severe youth unemployment in those
communities. We know unemployment running above 50% and higher will bring disastrous
consequences. These conditions exist among, Native American and Asian Pacific youth
across all this country. It is truly a national crisis.
It's also a moral and cultural crisis.
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A job is more than a paycheck, it is also a connection to society a relationship that makes
you feel a part, makes you feel you have a stake in society. Joblessness, especially long
term joblessness, is also like getting a pink slip from society. And when that happens, there
is a level of alienation and depression that drives millions of youth to destructive behavior.
And this ruling class has a hundred traps out there to destroy young people.
Unemployment kills; unemployment can have the most destructive impact not only for our
youth but also for society as a whole. With that in mind think of this, according to a recent
McClatchy Report, "only 55% of 16‐24 year olds in our country are working or looking for
work.
We have to ask an important question. "What is happening to the 45% who are not working
and stopped looking?" How are they surviving?
When the private sector and the government being fully aware of the crisis of youth
unemployment decides to do next to nothing (private sector) and actually cuts
government programs like summer jobs and offer far less then what is urgently needed,
we have a moral crisis. It is an economic crisis, which if not addressed, tears away at the
moral fibers of our society and the viability of our democracy.
Scotty Marshall, a vice chair of our party and our labor secretary has a great story to tell on
the new developments in the organization of the unemployed and what's on the horizon.
We look forward to that and we want to hear what is happening in your state.
Comrades, the fight for youth jobs is critical to defeating the right. The Republican line on
unemployment compensation is that it destroys the initiative of the unemployed to look
for work. That's not credible.
They are not for the extension of benefits because "it will add to the deficit". Imagine,
these extremists are for spending $5 billion a month for war and keeping the trillion‐dollar
tax cut for the rich in place but they say, "We can't afford to help the unemployed". That is
a disgrace. They ought to be ashamed of themselves.
This is what we are fighting against. The jobs movement, comrades, is key to defeating
these ultra right stooges of the ultra rich. It will also help in the fight against racism and for
immigrant rights because the key demand is government sponsored job creation.
A united fight for jobs requires unity not division.
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The proposed job's march on Washington in October 2nd will be a very important show of
strength and a way to mobilize for the November elections.
The youth jobs movement can help unite and activate the powerful youth vote next
November.
I tell you comrades; we have to work on this.
While we do that we have to revitalize the YCL and help it reach its potential. This country
needs the Young Communist League.
Young people today are very progressive. With all the anti youth propaganda to the
contrary, our Party is in praise of this generation of youth. There efforts made an historic
contribution to the people's victory in 2008. Their idealism, their hopes and dreams for a
more democratic progressive future for our country naturally leads them to activism and
to challenging capitalism.
The Pew Opinion Poll (May 4 of this year), which came out after the Rasmussen poll, found
that 43% of Americans under 30 years old describe "capitalism" as positive but the same
poll found that those who described "socialism" as positive also equaled 43%.
Despite living under capitalism all of their lives today's US youth are divided on which
system is more positive — capitalism or Socialism. So if I can use a sports metaphor, I
guess when it comes to US youth, capitalism has no home court advantage over socialism.
Charles Derber, sociology professor at Boston College in an article on the poll summed up
the results as "We are moving towards an America that is either Center‐Left or actually
majoritarian socialist".
This younger generation is for a more democratic, peaceful and just future and about half
are positively inclined toward the socialist alternative. With that in mind I say there has got
to be a real possibility of building a large, influential YCL.
Some are doubtful that we can actually build a large YCL in this country today. Well, I say
the YCL of all the youth organizations in this country has the most sensible and credible
program and approach to winning socialism. So is it possible to build the YCL, in our
country today? I say, "si se puede", "yes we can"!
With principled politics, an activist style, a youthful organizational and political approach, a
large YCL can be built. We certainly have to fight for it and that means the party has to take
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youth work seriously and give its best effort in every district, to helping the YCL grow in
influence and size. It is the main way the party carries out its work among youth. The point
we want to make at this conference is the fight for youth jobs is key to making this
happen.
This is why we are here this weekend and holding a short school next week. We want to
get things rolling. We have to take this show on the road and put it on the Internet.
Whatever it takes we have to bring the message of the YCL to 10's of thousands of youth.
Every former youth leader whose here today will tell you that there have been lulls, ups
and downs in the past and our experience shows that if the Party and the YCL together put
their shoulders to the wheel, great things can and will happen. This is why we are here.
In the battle against the right danger, I think the tide is turning.
I have a feeling that things are not going to be so good for the right in the next election
like most of the pundits are saying.
From the stimulus package to health care, the US Supreme Court nominees, the
progressive upsurge after the racist Arizona anti immigrant. "Remember May Day"... the
passage of the Wall Street reform bill yesterday was a big setback for the right and a
victory for Main Street.
Critical sections of voters are starting to trend more against the Republicans. Their
numbers are much worse then the Democrats and Obama. The NAACP's call for the Tea
Party to denounce the racism in their ranks is creating a new crisis for them. Frankly if the
Democrats play hard ball like the NACCP and real numbers are put in the streets by labor
and other mass movements the progressive forces have got the issues to set back the
Republican/ultra right attacks even with their millions in right wing and corporate
campaign funds.
The Tea Party is a collection of extreme right elements many of then mired in anti labor,
racist, homophobic and anti immigrant chauvinism. They hate the elected government. If
there is a historic reference, there ideology is kin to the ideology that brought us the Third
Reich. Defeating them is the paramount challenge before us today. I am confident that the
people will meet that challenge.
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In that spirit I want to make a proposal.
Last week the police officer that murdered Oscar Grant on the Bart Station in Oakland Cal.
was given a slap on the wrists for his act of cold‐blooded murder. We are appalled and
angered by what the courts did and we agree with Oscar's mother who cried out at the
press conference. "My son was murdered, my son was murdered" and "we want justice"!!
We too want justice and that is what we are fighting for....
So, I propose that we dedicate this weekend's conference to the memory of Oscar Grant
and all the innocent youths whose precious lives were taken by this brutal, anti human
system of capitalism and imperialism.
Let us begin...
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